News

Artificial intelligence, automation and robotics

• April 18, 2023 18 Apr'23

  Tech spending in India to grow by 9.6% in 2023

  Digital initiatives in the public sector along with investments in telecoms and other areas are expected to spur technology spending in India this year

• April 17, 2023 17 Apr'23

  Government launches Smart Data Council to lower utility bills

  The council aims to find ways to use and encourage uptake of smart data to make it easier to switch utility providers and save money

• April 14, 2023 14 Apr'23

  Alibaba Cloud unveils cheaper cloud options, new language model

  Alibaba has introduced cheaper instances of its compute and storage services in China and is jumping on the generative AI bandwagon with its Tongyi Qianwen language model

• April 13, 2023 13 Apr'23

  Italy to lift ChatGPT ban subject to new data protection controls

  Italian regulator will lift its ban on OpenAI’s ChatGPT subject to a strict new data protection regime

• April 13, 2023 13 Apr'23

  AstraZeneca launches African healthtech hub

  AstraZeneca has launched its latest healthcare innovation hub, which will focus on using digital technology to improve healthcare in Africa

• April 13, 2023 13 Apr'23

  ICO responds to UK government AI regulation plans

  The ICO has officially responded to the government’s plans for regulating artificial intelligence as outlined in its recent whitepaper, but called for clarity on certain aspects before the proposals are taken further

• April 12, 2023 12 Apr'23

  UK police double down on ‘improved’ facial recognition

  The Met and South Wales Police have doubled down on their use of facial recognition technology after research found improved accuracy in their algorithms when using certain settings, but civil society groups maintain that the tech will still be used...

• April 10, 2023 10 Apr'23

  How India’s Cropin is tapping the groundswell in agritech

  Cropin, one of the first movers in agriculture technology, has built an industry cloud platform that is now used by the likes of PepsiCo to maximise crop yields

• April 05, 2023 05 Apr'23

  Italy’s ChatGPT ban: Sober precaution or chilling overreaction?

  Italy’s data protection authority issued a temporary ban on ChatGPT citing data protection concerns and alleged breaches of the GDPR. Is this a reasonable precaution, or a chilling restriction on personal freedoms?

• April 05, 2023 05 Apr'23

  The Folio Society turns over new leaf with NetSuite

  Well known for its illustrated, hardback editions of books, The Folio Society has brought its finance systems up to date, in part to aid international growth, with Oracle NetSuite

• April 03, 2023 03 Apr'23

  CIO interview: Carter Busse, CIO, Workato

  Workato CIO Carter Busse talks up the company’s approach towards automation and its efforts to drive the technology across its business

• March 31, 2023 31 Mar'23

  Generative AI central to Accenture’s tech vision

  Generative AI will play a central role over the next 10 years as the digital and physical world become more and more integrated

• March 30, 2023 30 Mar'23

  Naver Cloud teams up with Korean tourism body

  The South Korean hyperscaler has teamed up with the Korea Tourism Organisation to improve visitor experience using its cloud capabilities

• March 29, 2023 29 Mar'23

  UK government publishes AI whitepaper

  Artificial intelligence whitepaper outlines UK government’s proposals to regulate the technology, which are based around creating an agile, “pro-innovation” framework

• March 29, 2023 29 Mar'23

  Generative AI presents opportunities and challenges to UK schools

  Generative AI and LLMs hold great potential for use in the classroom, but the privacy and security implications of its use must be carefully considered, says the Department for Education

• March 28, 2023 28 Mar'23

  Alan Turing Institute unveils strategy to support UK AI

  The strategy is built around helping the UK government realise its artificial intelligence ambitions, and focuses on areas where the UK can play a transformative role in shaping AI development

• March 28, 2023 28 Mar'23

  Microsoft expands AI Copilot project into security realm

  New Microsoft service, Security Copilot, will supposedly expand the reach, speed and effectiveness of cyber teams

• March 28, 2023 28 Mar'23

  How ChatGPT will become a programmer’s best friend

  ChatGPT has shown it can produce code. It can also identify bugs and even figure out what a code snippet is trying to do

• March 28, 2023 28 Mar'23

  Europol warns cops to prep for malicious AI abuse

  In a report looking at how large language models can be used by criminals, Europol’s Innovation Lab calls on law enforcement agencies to prepare themselves for wide-ranging impacts on their work

• March 27, 2023 27 Mar'23

  Lords AI weapons committee holds first evidence session

  In first evidence session of Lords AI weapons committee, expert witnesses unpack claims that artificial intelligence in weapon systems will help military organisations to improve their compliance with international humanitarian law

• March 24, 2023 24 Mar'23

  How large language models address enterprise IT

  It’s being pitched as Microsoft versus Google, but the large language models from these two giants are likely to revolutionise IT usability

• March 23, 2023 23 Mar'23

  Podium taps ChatGPT for reputation management

  The customer interaction and payment specialist with operations in Australia has integrated ChatGPT into its platform to help local businesses respond to customer reviews on social media

• March 22, 2023 22 Mar'23

  UK government launches international tech strategy as tool of diplomacy

  The UK government has announced an international technology strategy to promote the country abroad, strengthening ties with allies and supporting developing nations

• March 20, 2023 20 Mar'23

  Government should invest in maritime tech, say MPs

  Report from the Transport Committee calls for investment in technology for the maritime sector, and wants the government to make it easier to scale-up innovation

• March 17, 2023 17 Mar'23

  UK government to create code of practice for generative AI firms

  The code will look to strike a balance between copyright holders and generative AI firms so that both parties can benefit from the use of copyrighted material in training data

• March 17, 2023 17 Mar'23

  Microsoft trials ChatGPT to boost enterprise productivity

  The Office Suite, Outlook, Teams and Power tools are about to get an AI boost thanks to Microsoft 365 Copilot

• March 16, 2023 16 Mar'23

  Vallance review advocates light-touch regulation for emerging technologies

  Patrick Vallance, the outgoing government chief scientific adviser, has seen his light-touch emerging technologies regulation advice accepted by the government lock, stock and barrel

• March 16, 2023 16 Mar'23

  Budget 2023: startups extra funding via R&D relief and pensions

  UK government aims to promote increased investment in research and development-intensive startups through tax relief measures, relaxed pension rules, and new investment zones

• March 15, 2023 15 Mar'23

  Budget 2023: Chancellor affirms tax relief for IT investment

  Jeremy Hunt’s Spring Budget makes IT investment tax expendable for three years and announces support for artificial intelligence companies, including annual £1m ‘Manchester Prize’

• March 14, 2023 14 Mar'23

  NCSC warns over AI language models but rejects cyber alarmism

  The UK's NCSC has issued advice for those using the technology underpinning AI tools such as ChatGPT, but says some of the security doomsday scenarios being proposed right now are not necessarily realistic

• March 14, 2023 14 Mar'23

  AI interview: Elke Schwarz, professor of political theory

  Elke Schwarz speaks with Computer Weekly about the ethics of military artificial intelligence and the dangers of allowing governments and corporations to push forward without oversight or scrutiny

• March 10, 2023 10 Mar'23

  Technology minister Michelle Donelan defends data reforms

  Secretary of state Michelle Donelan has defended the government’s new data reforms as providing certainty for businesses while simultaneously retaining high standards of data protection, but industry figures are having mixed reactions

• March 08, 2023 08 Mar'23

  UK government introduces revised data reform bill to Parliament

  Designed in close collaboration with technology businesses, the UK government is re-introducing an updated version of its Data Protection and Digital Information Bill to Parliament, which civil society groups say upends key safeguards

• March 08, 2023 08 Mar'23

  Executive interview: BT chief procurement officer, Cyril Pourrat

  BT Sourced is part of BT Group and aims to tackle the telecommunications giant’s multibillion-pound spending. We speak to its procurement chief

• March 07, 2023 07 Mar'23

  Taking back control: Could a distributed model breed a better AI?

  AI tools such as ChatGPT are trained on datasets scraped from the web, but you don’t have much say if your data is used. Technologist Bruce Schneier says it’s time to give control of AI training data back to the people

• March 07, 2023 07 Mar'23

  APAC IT leaders bullish on tech spending

  Over half of respondents in this year’s IT Priorities study have bigger IT budgets as they continue to make strategic investments in cyber security, cloud and automation, among other areas

• March 06, 2023 06 Mar'23

  Guinness World Records goes digital

  Guinness World Records has been around since 1955. Over the past 20 years, it has transformed from book publishing to consultancy and digital content creation, most recently marshalling NetSuite

• March 06, 2023 06 Mar'23

  Lords Committee to investigate use of AI-powered weapons systems

  House of Lords to investigate the use of artificial intelligence in weapons systems, following UK government publication of AI defence strategy in June 2022

• March 06, 2023 06 Mar'23

  Government announces Science and Technology framework

  The government has announced the first major work completed by its recently launched Department for Science, Innovation and Technology

• March 03, 2023 03 Mar'23

  Newham Council expands on data economy plans unveiled in 2021

  Newham Council plans to set up a ‘data campus’ at East Ham Town Hall to continue the data economy development vision it announced at London Tech Week in 2021

• March 02, 2023 02 Mar'23

  AI interview: Michael Osborne, professor of machine learning

  Artificial intelligence researcher speaks with Computer Weekly about the implications of a market-driven AI arms race and the overwhelming dominance of the private sector over the technology

• March 01, 2023 01 Mar'23

  CIO interview: Clare Lansley, CIO, Aston Martin Formula One

  A rare female CIO in a male-dominated sport, Lansley discusses how digital transformation is all a part of helping the team to move further up the F1 grid

• February 28, 2023 28 Feb'23

  Industrial safetytech startups secure £150m funding since 2020

  Industrial safetytech investment reached a record high of $100m in 2021, and remains significantly ahead of pre-pandemic funding levels despite a dip in 2022

• February 28, 2023 28 Feb'23

  Korea telecom giant SKT doubles down on AI

  SKT plans to broaden the use of AI across its business, from delivering AI-powered services to improving customer experience using generative AI models

• February 24, 2023 24 Feb'23

  UK police have ‘culture of retention’ around biometric data

  A culture of retention around biometric data in UK policing is damaging public trust, says UK biometrics commissioner, who is calling for clear regulation to govern police use of biometric technologies

• February 23, 2023 23 Feb'23

  ANZ CIOs flag priorities amid inflation concerns

  CIOs in Australia and New Zealand are concerned about inflation and plan to adjust their technology priorities to optimise resources and combat cyber threats

• February 22, 2023 22 Feb'23

  UK HSE to launch regulatory sandbox for industrial safety tech

  The sandbox will see the regulator work with industry and tech startups to accelerate the development and adoption of a range of safety-related technologies, with a particular emphasis on data and analytics

• February 22, 2023 22 Feb'23

  Tony Blair and William Hague call for a remade strategic state to stoke UK innovation

  Former Labour prime minister and former Conservative Party leader argue for a remaking of the British state to capitalise on artificial intelligence, biotech and climate tech, and reverse the country’s decline

• February 22, 2023 22 Feb'23

  Institute for Government cautions government to draw right lessons from pandemic

  The Institute for Government has published a policy document warning government not to draw wrong lessons from data sharing during pandemic

• February 21, 2023 21 Feb'23

  Singtel eyes retailers with enterprise 5G offerings

  Singtel teams up with Apple’s enterprise solution partners to drive 5G adoption among retailers with industry-specific offerings aimed at improving retail operations and customer experience